here we go new chapter. Halotoken I know what i said about the Turians but it did not work out that way (Shrughs)
Here the Turians screw up and the war turns on them next chapter i have no set plans for but it will be good i hope. reviews wellcome,
BOLD leaning type: text messages.
Leaning:thoughts plus song.
/Bold with slashs/:non sentint AI Thoughts and or speach
He was ready.
It had taken months, the first month to bring the equipment, a second to get it into position and get more troops in. It was slow going due to the heavy forces that were hidden in both the relay system and this one each convoy needed to have a heavy escort or they would get killed. Admiral Jemel promised to have the forces smoked out soon enough still his part was ready.
Helin turned to the contractor they had hired out for this operations.
"Are the charges ready?"
"Smug Indifference: yes. With Pride:they will never know what hit them."
"Won't go that far but it won't be to far from that."
Helin turned to the trenches he pulled a trigger from his belt.
"Have you slaved the charges to my detonator?"
"Ambivalence: yes push the button and the earth will explode."
He activated his communicator on his omni tool.
"All units prepare to advance we begin when the explosion starts, you've all been briefed on you objectives know we can take them. There technology is great but are will is greater! For the Hierarchy ATTACK!" He slammed the button down.
80 feet under the trench lines 400 pounds of explosive, placed by Elcor robo miners detonated.
The massive explosive force ripped up send a pillar of dirt sky ward and a C-RAM was sent sky ward and the force blew marine sky ward the impact with the ground bursting internal organs.
It was not the only one. 50 400 pound explosive charges had been placed and at the same time they exploded.
Bunkers were pulverized in second as the explosive went to work.
Bomb shelters never built for underground pressure waves exploded.
Tanks flew though the air propelled by explosives.
Dirt fell like rain as the ground shock to operation Thunder. The explosions were so great and so numerous a few minor earth quacks were set off and when the ground stopped shaking the Turians attacked.
With a roar they moved forward tanks rumbling behind them. Marine tried to fight back but they were dazed, disorganized and surprised as the onrushing Turian force moved in they fought to the last.
Marines stood their ground in their ruined defenses as the Turians advanced they held the line.
They made the Turian pay for every inch of ground they took and the earth ran blue with Turian blood flayed from their body's by rapid fire assault rifles.
The marines though could not hold. Their shields worn down by assault rifles they fell one by one under the gun fire and the Turians made their way to the city proper.
Unlike the Hierarchy they did not just start burning but they occupied. But just like the Hierarchy they found the buildings empty. Bad enemy's made good evacuations procedures and transports were already moving to the city the flow network unstable for such long distance flowing as one tower lost either by accident or design meant the death of all the flowers.
The streets rang to automatic weapon fire as the Turians fought street by street for their objective. Humans sheer strength at arms and stubbornness refused to yield them an inch and the Turian stubbornness pressed them to take every inch.
They rapidly found the only way to beat an entrenched human marine were heavy vehicles and close quarters fighting to blow their shield and beat their armor down with rapid fire guns. They paid for it, their army of 34,000 was dieing in droves but they were winning this battle.
SHIFT
Orlok watched the replay of the first part of the battle as a transport was readied. The footage live streamed and recorded from cameras that were everywhere, from hidden flow conduits to bunkers they provided live information updates and Orlok watched how they had lost the first part of the battle.
"Underground explosives, I would never have thought of that." Orlok, despite having no face, some how manged to look thoughtful "Ingenious, we need to integrate seismic defenses into our trenches and deploy mining drones to counter attack." He thought to him self.
Carter broke his train of thoughts.
"Sir the transports are ready."
Orlok shifted his attention to his visual ports, eyes to use non robotic Novus speak. The airport was busy marines rushing to transports in ordered chaos and the massive Sky Lifter transporters, basically the same as the transports used by Novus in First contact.
The marines got on board and their armor was uploaded off them and when they got out it was downloaded onto them from the buffers allowing it to fly with many more marines than if their sheer mass was taking up extra room.
"Good I'll go to the front." He said walking to a heavy vehicle transport he cut ahead of a Paladin tank and was uploaded onto the transport.
SHIFT
"GET GOING!" The Marine fired a burst over his shoulder as civilians rushed through the marines fire point.
The Turians were not there yet but they were close.
Sergeant Ken was eyeing the streets leading to the air port watching for the contact as the controlled chaos of a fast evac flowed past them.
Problem was all their plans were based to fight the Hierarchy
who just wanted to murder them all reports have come in of Turians not even bothering the inevitable left behinds and ones who just got confused and went to the wrong air port.
There was even a report of a Turian helping some one injured by the fighting.
It was throwing moral down a bit honestly. They were acting far more, human, then any Grunt. And now there was regret with fighting and killing them in the thousands as they were doing.
"Contact!" Ken yelled as a Turian APC enter the street and gun lowered to face it.
SHIFT
The Turian driver of the APC Lunel saw the bullets impact his shield. Ahead of him he saw a group of civilians around the defense of point.
"Coward, having to hide behind civilians." He scoffed to his gunner Shmin he then noticed they were running past the troops not staying.
"Is that an airport behind them?" He asked and Shmin nodded adding.
"Seems they're evacing and those guys are holding the ground to keep us out."
"Well good. Lets take them out when the civilians pass."
SHIFT
A the Sky lifters flew over the ocean they grew a screen of Dervish fighters to ward off enemy fighters and the few that did come were warded off.
The Sky Lifters deployed to the citys and dropped troops off.
Orlok was the first one on the tarmack as marines thundered out of transports feet ringing off the ground.
As Marines got off civilians got on. Orlok did not turn to Carter,but he spoke to him.
"You have you objectives?"
"Raise hell." He said with a evil smile. He reached up and dropped his visor over his eyes and his skin shimmered as implanted cloaking modules in his skin, muscle and bone in a half second he was invisible save as a faint out line to those with proper scanners.
Marines soon ran to the battle raging nearby.
SHIFT
Lunel saw the transports land with troops. He activated the radio.
"Command this is Mechanized platoon T-84. We have spotted incoming military transports."
"Confirm T-84 our fighters saw them on the way in when they get over the ocean we'll commence bombardment." Lunel smiled as he put the mic back on the hook.
"Good." A second latter Shmin opened up with the main gun as all civilians were out of the target zone the mass effect cannon pounding massive anti tank shell as fast as he could pull the trigger.
The Turian infantry around the tank began to lay "Suppressive fire" for the tank. Not that Marines suppressed easily the only infantry to get confirm kills were snipers with shots that went in eye slits, hit joints and used high power rounds to kill targets.
Shmin suddenly stopped shooting for a half second when he saw some transports lift off.
"Holy shit! Didn't we see civilians evacing?"
Lunel jaw almost dropped "There going to shoot transport full of civilians."
He lunged for the radio.
SHIFT
Orlok lacked the shoulder plasma gun he had when he left. (betrayed) the Hierarchy what he had now was a 60mm Mark22 grenade luncher on each shoulder. Together they could put almost 120 rounds of high explosive, anti tank, fragmenting or incendiary ammo down range a minute.
Despite what he often said every one felt he was compensating for something.
Aside from that he also had a Nano bot disassembler in his left hand, the one with 8 prongs and in his chest cavity he had a 15 round 70mm artillery buffer with nanolathing ability to create more shells. Took up as much room in his carapace as the old Hierarchy system did though the buffer gave him a three times of shell space.
Suffice to say he was a terror striding into the Turian lines at the head of a marine platoon.
Guns thumping he moved forward Turians sent AT weapons his way only for it to thump of his shield
"Left flank!" He yelled simply spinning that way and pouring grenades into the building in question setting it down around Turian ears before they could even set up.
With as much attention other shrug he fired a quick nano beam into the building and produced a full buffer of shell.
"Fire support position Jorman square!" The radio said over his in build systems.
"Did you a laze on the targets?" Orlok said back.
"Orlok? This will be fun. Targets will be lazed. Light. Them. Up!"
"Powering up for bombardment!" His back plates slid back and his shoulder launchers with them and the round barrel of the 70mm luncher slid out of the gap, the front of the barrel glowing slightly.
Orlok thumped his feet into the ground rear claw engaging and getting a tight grip on the earth, this gun had a bitch of a recoil.
The gun fired the muzzle flash lighting up for many feet the shells following the laser, or "laze" from the marines targeter to the targets and the shell landed ripping up with high explosive fire power. The 70mm system was used on the Liberator self propelled artillery system.
The explosions ripped the Turians apart.
"Right next objective 8th street."
"Thats the one that runs right on the cliff?" A marine asked looking up at Orlok 'face'.
"Yes the winds will not be bad, still eye your shots." He trudged to the road marines close behind him.
His land warrior system showed that the Turians had taken about half the city quickly due to the shock of their attack. But as Marines came to the city their attack was slowing and was being slowly to be repulsed once the city was theres again they would flow troops around them and annihilate them. Orlok thought some what smugly.
"Careful Orlok, those thought let to Nufai almost killing you. Don't be cocky. He has surprised you once. He may again." Orlok cautioned himself, though he did not know who he was talking, the Turian general or Nufai.
The platoon made their way down the road meeting little resistance along the way. Though the term of human light resistance was about three platoons to their one.
"Transports out bound." The AI intel officer said and Orlok paused slightly and turned to look over the ocean to see the transports begin the trip to New Jericho they were meeting up with the dervish fighter escort and were currently home free given how many fighter were in the area.
SHIFT
Admiral Jemel was in orbit he had the transports lined up under a orbital bombardment mass driver. On his command a three ton bolt of palladium would fire from his ships main gun. The heat of reentry would burn off most of it till it was as big as a marble go at five time the speed of sound. It was the equivalent of a laser guided bomb.
"Sir the transports are over the ocean." An Ensign said.
Jemel smiled time to take out some military transports. The last military intelligence he had gotten said there were military transports nothing about what was loaded in them.
"Fire main gun."
SHIFT
The beam of light sliced down from the heavens and sliced though a transport with a all mighty explosion rocking Orlok back in shock more then impact.
"God and all his saints." A Marine muttered as the now burning ship sunk slowly down.
Orlok started to yell into his radio. "All transports are not to lift off! Repeat all transports are not to lift off!"
Another blast from orbit arced down and a second transport exploded and sunk slowly down to the ocean wreathed in flames.
The Marine platoon was stunned, they had grown complacent so to speak. They just had not come to expect cruelty from Turians.
A third beam arched down though a transport, each transport spearing the humans in the heart, embittering them to the Turian plight.
Total losses were at 900 and only one transport was left.
SHIFT
"Admiral Jemel transmission from general Helin. Priority red." The communication officer said.
"Put it on."
"Cease bombardment! Repeat cease bombardment we have Blue on Green contact!"
In Turian code, Blue meant friendly, red enemy, green civilians.
Jemel blanched. "Cease fire!" He yelled and the main gun did cease fire. He sighed.
"How many dead?"
"Unknown. They were using military transport for the evac, a standard Turian Lifter transport can carry 400 people and we took three out."
"Damn." Jemel said somberly.
SHIFT
Orlok was confused.
"Why didn't they shoot the last transport?"
"Maybe they didn't mean to do it?" A marine added "And they only just figured it out."
"Bull shit!" Another yelled "They killed our civilians intentional or not they will PAY!"
"Agreed." Orlok rumbled. "Lets go we have civilians to avenge." The attack pushed down the road.
"I want half of the Dervish to begin sweeps for survivors the rest start bombing the Turians." Making his way around a slight curve he soon had a eye on a Turian strong point and tracers from heavy weapon fire lanced into his armor plating.
"To battle!" He yelled and his grenades started to pound the Turian make shift cover blowing it apart in a hail of high explosive grenades carving the Turians apart as the Marines behind Orlok lent there gun to the slaughter.
Word spreed fast among the marines and it lent rage to their assaults.
Relying on their armor they assaulted Turian positions with what could only be called recklessness.
Rapid assaults and fast flowing, in both sense of the word, men, tanks and weapons forward and around the Turians to attack from behind.
The city shook to heavy tanks and the rumbled of close supported shells in a dance of death. The Turians were driven back with an ease that shocked them and they found themselves giving ground faster then they could dig in to the territory to defend themselves.
Before they got a half minute of rest the Alliance attacked keeping the pressure up driving them back from the city. In less then a day they had a gain of a half a city, and the lose of the whole army.
Artillery soon crashed once more turning the old Alliance trenches into a war zone of falling shells the Turians had two choices.
Fight or run across a war zone of raining shells.
They fought.
In old buildings on the edge of city the Turians fought to the last the Humans giving and taking no quarter.
Turians crumpled to the crushing blows of the Alliance the entire force that started the attack was almost wiped in a hail of gun fire.
Now Orlok turned his army to the reserves.
SHIFT
Helin ducked down as another fighter bomber rained explosives on his command post.
All around him was the clatter of automatic weapons and he was trying to save a victory from this disaster.
He was clearly failing.
He had attacked with 34,000 infantry and 500 tanks. He had left 46,000 infantry and 1,000 tanks as a reserve. As it stood though the first wave had been annihilated with ease. Urban combat, always violent, had crushed them against the heavily armored and armed Marines.
Now he had found him self surrounded and attacked on all sides. As was often said, they came from nowhere.
Alliance flow technology allowed such immense tactical movement to such a degree that the Turians just could not imagine it.
Helin found himself in a tactical nightmare. A faster, stronger and more advanced enemy
A explosion rocked the command post ands Helin tried to regain control. "Sir Jemel is sending some transports for evacuations. But we need to regain control of the air." Helin nodded.
"Right." Helin thought fast only to be cut off but a burst of gun fire. From right out side?
A sergeant drew a submachine gun and opened the door and looked around. No one.
Before any one could blink his head exploded.
Suddenly tracers lepted around the room with the bangs that signaled a semi auto weapon though even the muzzle flash was absent.
Helin grabbed an assault rifle and sprayed the room hoping to hit something, reports of how they had manged to cloak battle ships flashing though his mind.
He did think he hit something, an outline flashed for half a second and a shimmer remained for a couple second after wards.
Suddenly a sphere emerged from thin air and Helin reflexively caught it only to figure out just how stupid that was and threw it away.
The flash bang erupted blowing Helin down and dazing him.
Carter turned his cloaking off having taken a slight bullet wound. He took it as kinetic shielding interfered with the cloaking.
Goggles glowing red he looked over the stunned general before he reached down and picked him up activating cloaking again he, and his hidden package left the pocket of Turians.
Leadership crippled from the very top the Turians were doomed and the Human pressed in with vengeance in their eyes. The Turian had passed the point of no return. Their would be no forgiveness. Just war.
They stormed forward every Turian they met was ripped apart in a hail of gun fire there was no surrender. Turians don't surrender and the Humans would not have likely accepted it any way.
Tanks were torn apart by heavy weapons, their crew, cut down in a hail of gun fire before they could take a step.
Turian local counter attacks were beaten back and the marines pressed on.
Guns beating a tempo the Turian army went from possible victory to total obliteration in about a day.
At 1900 the last of the Turian, about 400 surrendered, surrounded by marines they finally yielded.
SHIFT
Helin was walking in the city. The trooper who had named himself Carter was holding a rifle to his back after he grew tired of carrying him. The sun was setting a burning glaze of red light that harshly reflected off steel, rock, and blood.
"Where are you taking me?"
"Your meeting commander Orlok." Helin thought that over.
"That does not sound like a Human name from what research we did."
"Good ear, keep moving." He thumped him slightly making him stumble.
Helin turned a corner and stopped. It was the weapon his information specialist had dubbed Ymir+.
It turned to face him it seemed to have been receiving orders from a marine.
It lumbered up to him and Helin took a step back only for Carters gun to poke him in the back
Nervously he looked up at the giant mech. Its left hand snapped shut with the finality of a switch on a electric chair, the eight "fingers" forming a point.
"General Helin." It rumbled. "I am commander Orlok I think you owe the human race an explanation."
"Your the general! They put an AI in charge?" He was surprised to say the least.
"I am not an AI. I merely have a robot body, and you did not answer the question. Over 900 civilians are dead how do you explain it."
Marines closed around Helin, he knew just how many loaded guns were pointing at him.
"A mistake. All my intelligence said was military transports I did not think to ask if they were coming or going. If I had then I would not transports leaving would likely have wounded, or injured or just be empty. Not something I would have had Jemel shoot." He hung his head "I did not mean to cost the life of one civilian."
Silence. Orlok broke it.
"I believe you." A few marines gave out crys one went so far as to fire a round into the air. Orlok gave him a hard "look".
"Your tone, words and body speak of some one who though is not truly feeling the pain of what he did, is ashamed of it. I had that same look when I walked the killing fields of earth. Killing fields I made." An uncomfortable silence hung over the small grouping as night fell. The Marines reminded that commander Orlok, hero and savior of the alliance was inside, a Hierarchy.
"You will be taken into custody and will face a military court. They will choose your fate."
Helin nodded "I understand."
"Good. Carter take him to the cell block." Carter nodded and the pair walked away.
Orlok turned to face the sky. Soon he would unleash the orbital weapons.
And drive them from his adopted home.
SHIFT
Almon entered the lab to check on some of Mordin's findings. First thing he noticed was the small Power Source on a nearby table hooked to some computers measuring the power draw. The unassuming code name was for the thing they had pulled out of the armor.
Mordin was looking at a microscope slide with a drop of the blue fluid from the cut cable on it.
"Mordin you said you made a discovery in your report what was it?"
Mordin looked up. "Yes. You gave me this as you suspect it was biological? Its not."
He walked to a nearby file cabinet and drew a printed photocopy of a graph out and handed it to Almon.
"Fluid does contain organic components. Primary levio chemicals glucose, adrenalin, morphine, dopamine also several non organic metals in large doses primarily titanium and silver fused in a unknown alloy that seems to have the non corrosive property's of the silver and the strength and weight of the titanium. Graph hold percentage by weight."
"Impressive that explains the silvery color of most of the internal mechanical fittings."
"Not the most impressive." Almon looked up.
"Suspended in the fluid were these." He handed a second print to Almon. The print out was a image of some kind of hexagon with arms next to a red blood cell equivalent of the Salarians.
"Is that a drop of blood?" Mordin nodded.
"For scale. Its some kind of tiny machine that composed almost 80 percent of the mass of the fluid. These cables are linked to the man inside the likely held some kind of medical function. That armor can not be removed fast when injured they need a way to treat the man in side with out removing it."
"How do they power it?" Almon muttered not really expecting a answer.
"Theory. Machines turned off when in absence of external power source." Mordin turned his omni tool on and project a image on the wall of the machines not moving. "But when the temperature rose to about 90 degrees." The projection suddenly showed the machines moving around. "They activate. Suspect humans are exothermic and standard body temperature is above 90 degrees providing the power."
"Good theory." Almon said.
"Also could be the glucose. The organic chemical provides energy for life could also be used explaining presence in fluid."
"Another good one check them out."
He then turned to the single biggest head ache his crew had. "Any insights on the power source?"
Mordin walked over to with Almon. "Many! The more power drawn from it the brighter the glow gets. Also have been drawing power from it for three days, the power has not waved a micron, three Kilojoule." Almon almost did a double take.
"Three Kilojoules? From that thing?"
"Yes. Can not draw more then three Kilojoules power efficiency drops and remaining power is split as evenly as can be between remaining. Also have scanned it many times can not detect any mechanical, chemical or radiological procedure or process. Its the like energy is just, springing from nothing."
"What is it made of?" Almon asked.
"Most interesting. Did a comparison check to samples taken from shoulder pad armor of the suit. The two are made of radically different metals. Recently have done a new comparison." Mordin picked up a petri dish with a few slivers of metal in it.
"Test has just come back positive. These two metal are similar." He handed the dish to Almon who looked at the metal.
"And they are?" Almon asked.
"Prothean metal." Almon turned on the spot to stare at him.
"Why was I not informed earlier?"
"Test just came in a few minutes ago. Had to double check my results." Mordin walked to Power Source staring into it.
"Only three possibility. One: They found a lot of these Power source for their armor. Unlikely, such a finding would not yield enough of them for their whole army. Two:they found a way to recreate it. Again unlikely given wide range of disparity between the armor and the Power Source."
Mordin took a breath "The third possibility, and the most likely is they have met the Protheans and have had them make the technology for them."
Silence in the lab. Almon lost in his thoughts and Mordin waiting to break his theory. "And I may know who they are."
Almon waited for Mordin to continue. "On the human world of Shanxi the Specter team was granted full access to the Alliance history the files for the third member of the Alliance, the Masari were of questionable validity showing things that clearly broke the physical laws, much like are Power Source."
"Suspect, given the images the the files had on the Masari, mostly in the color of their building being identical to the Power Source and are Power Source being made of the same metal of the Prothaens. The Masari are the Protheans."
Silence and Almon looked at the Power Source.
That single sentence. The Masari are the Protheans could change the galaxy. The Hannar being the tip of a very big ice berg.
The implications were unimaginable.
"We need to find a Masari and question them." Almon said and Mordin nodded. "Your proving to have quite a lot of cross specialization not mentioned in you personal file." Almon said to Mordin.
"Only professional geneticist but, dabble in other things."
Almon nodded. "I see a bright future for you Mordin after this I have a mission on Tuchanka, classified but genetics very important."
"Love to but for now need more samples and data." Mordin walked back to his microscope. He then looked up with a worried look on his face.
"One thing though. These small machines? Suspect medical not their only purpose. Have read science fiction of the Elcor writer Perl'merta. The books commonly theme is on so called nanotechnology which can be used to assemble items on the molecule scale, with great speed. Aware this is not a book still implications are, unsettling." Mordin locked eyes with Almon before he broke contact to get back to work.
SHIFT
Admiral Lance had gathered his fleet in the Shanxi system.
The 14th Orion had gathered along with a second fleet, the 15th Orion. On paper just as new as the 14th the 15th though was more well prepared, had their shake down runs and were ready for war.
"Admiral all ships are ready." Georgia intoned "Also we having an official request from Captain Keara Gale Dan requesting the audio follow you up to Carlow."
Lance frowned. He thought the whole "Playing songs when fighting" To be silly but there was so much evidence that it worked he played along.
"Denied, play track two."
"Two steps from hell had some pretty bad ass music." Georgia said.
SHIFT
Three weeks had passed since Helms Deep was assaulted and Orlok was waiting for the time to unleash orbital hell.
"Commander Orlok, Admiral Lance is in position he has requested you activate the orbital weapon systems."
"Finally ready the orbital weapons."
On the side of the planet the Turians were over missiles prepped in there silos. In citys, targets the Hierarchy had learned to not bombard due to getting shot at in return, Rail gun rose from the blue mist of nanobots assembling it.
In two minutes they were ready.
In one they fired.
SHIFT
Admiral Jemel was having a bad week. First he found out that no convoys had arrived meaning they had been destroyed so he sent about half his fleet to the relay system to try and find them and then he had no word from them now.
He was worried.
Suddenly warning sirens blared,
"Incoming planetary missiles!" A bridge officer yelled over the intercom "Activating GARDIAN defenses."
The missiles were inbound and when they got close enough GARDIAN opened up. Bolts of red light arched across space and impacted the first missile.
The Black hole that formed on impact surprised all the Turians.
"What the hell?" Jemel said stunned the black hole bomb was the single most lethal warhead the Alliance had and while the black hole screwed with their sensors with the hawking radiation the atomic warheads raced to meet them.
GARDIAN fired again but they found they could not stop the Nucks. A common trick of the cold war was to have the missiles contain multiple warheads upon interception the warhead proper blew apart and a cluster of five megaton bombs flew out.
GARDIAN was good but it could not stop them all. Missiles broke though the hail storm of lasers and impacted the hull of the ships.
The flash of atomic warheads lit up space and was visible on the planet surface. Ships were blown apart, hulls caved in, radiation flooded the interior in a wave of flame that incinerated any organic standing burning their outlines into the steel of the hulls.
Then the Alliance navy emerged Auto cannons roaring they sliced into the Turian fleet like a stiletto dagger.
Jemel's dreadnought True Warrior took five atomic blasts but still fought back. Spinal gun firring it speared a Hoplite ship in a flash of light that bisected the ship the True Warrior was then blasted with a single black hole bomb that ripped the ship apart.
Jemel died in the blast the black hole ripping the bridge, the crew, and himself apart at the subatomic scale.
The Turians fought to the last against the tide of the inevitable.
The void lit to Autocannon fire, lasers and mass effect gun fire as the Turian traded fire with the Alliance navy who tore them apart with guns far more powerful then the Turians.
The Turian fleet was destroyed in orbit of Shanxi the sky burned as pieces fell from orbit in a hail of burning steel and shattered body's
To Orlok no sight could match that.
"It is true what the general said." He mused "The body of a dead enemy always smells sweet." He clanked the eight prongs of his right arm into a "fist".
SHIFT
The gun range of New Mississippi was full of the drilling 1st Libertà Marines.
They were getting better. It wouldn't be long till they were deployed.
Aliner fired her RR-88 the gun roaring as tech shells ripped the transport apart down range apart the old out dated Hammer head IFV made to look like a phase tank had more dents then... words failed her.
The best that came to was what would happen if you set a Krogan with a hammer who had a bad day loose in your space shuttle.
A human voice, in oddly accented English spoke up behind her breaking the concentration she had on the sights on the gun.
"So you're the 1st Libertà?" Aliner turned to see a pair marines in armor she had never seen before.
Unlike the Vengeance armor it was slimmer, more form fitting, less bulky. She noted his armor was an odd black and pink camouflage. From what she had read about it was what the humans called dazzle camouflage.
She noted he wore a non standard piece of equipment, a Beret with a metal emblem in place of a helmet. Her HUD auto zoomed on his emblem. A four leafed clover over a pair of cross Assault rifles, bayonets out and the words on the bottom, "Fear the Thunder, for we are near."
"Yes I am."
"Alien?" He growled slightly to a second Marine, a Turian with green tattoos that ran up his flanges and between his eyes moved up.
"This is not a rubber mask."
"Well good that makes this easy." Before the Turian could blink he lashed out a blow that slammed into his face and broke his left head fringe like he would a human nose. No matter if he was smaller in thinner armor on a fire range with live guns!
Aliner was stunned for a half second then fought back with a fast blow at the other one only to meet air. The thinner armor lent him greater speed and he shoved her in the back knocking her on her face literally. Her HUD had a crack in it now.
She ripped the helmet off and stood up. "Its on." She took to a basic combat stance.
Alliance marines had full hand to hand training that was based on a number of martial arts. The whole point of it was to make you movements as efficient as possible to save as much energy as you could, and to take as many hostiles out as you could. There was a heavy focus on bayonet drill and close quarters brawling using the long RR-88 as a club or stave.
Marines may look it but they weren't wrestlers.
Aliner opponent was not a Marine but a Light Infantryman assigned to 1st Ireland heavy bombardment. Light Infantry were taught how to take on targets much bigger then themselves like Grunts. They're faster and more agile than Marines and could go places they couldn't (like bogs and mud flats)
The Light Infantry man moved forward a combat knife emerged from his belt as he lunged, not that it could harm her in her armor.
Her first blow swung her arm in a back hand to hit him in the shoulder, but he ducked low and drove his knife into a leg joint breaking servos and spilling nano fluid like blood. She fell on one knee as her armor's leg went out from under her.
The Turian though was back up and punching.
He twisted around and kicked the first Infantry man in the chest from the ground his light armor easily taking the blunt trauma as he stumbled back.
The Turian was back up and lunched a storm of punches each on in his armor able to dent the side of a car.
The human dodged every blow his armor making each blow seem slow. He then charged forward bowling him over with the move and he launched another punch into the Turians face.
Aliner saw another knife blow cut into her left shoulder joint five times each blow fast and well placed trying to pry the plate clean off.
Aliner sighed she knew she hoped this would work she just started to do her plan when a Sergeant flanked by a pair of Military Policemen.
"Enough! Stand down all of you!"
Aliner gave a roar not even hearing the order and with a reflex muscle spasm fired a warp from her right hand the whole armored glove blew apart reveling her hand.
With a quick lift she did a throw straight at her foe and threw him 20 feet onto the silent firing range stunning him.
The crowd that had gathered, mostly aliens from 1st Libertà was silent and the humans there were stunned they had never seen biotics before.
Aliner tried to stand, failing her armor having taken more damage then most veterans suffer in months of war due to her enemy interment knowledge of her armor and the agility to use it.
The Turian stood up as the man he had been fighting backed off to glare at him.
"I'll just ignore you for a second," The Sergeant said pointing at Aliner who was still trying to stand. "What the hell happened!"
"Beats me." The Turian said shrugging his shoulder pads rolling and there size making it quite obvious. "He just punched me in the head."
"You killed over 900 people at Shanxi!" The Light Infantryman growled "I have every damn right to bruise a damn Turian!" He pointed a thumb at Aliner "She just got in the damn way."
"I've never even heard of Shanxi!" The Turian said back "And I am not the Hierarchy!" Mumbles went around the room as humans shifted at the name. "I have no say in what they bomb or don't bomb! If I did they I would have start by bombing who ever started this whole FUBAR situation!"
"Enough!" The sergeant yelled. "You Plate head get to the Medic, you two 'Thunder Heads'." The unflattering nick name for members of the 1st heavy bombardment riled the two of them. "Report to the MP barracks." With a grumble the two left giving a last glare at the Turian as they left followed by the MP.
"Now problem two: what the Hell did you do!" He pointed at Aliner.
"Just a biotic warp followed by a throw."
"Just a warp? You blew you glove off! I've seen more dead marines then any man has a right to see and it takes a hell of a lot to fully destroy any part of a marine armor."
"Never been done from the inside." She said back finally growing sick of trying to stand and just leaned against a wall.
"Fair enough. Alright you and you." He pointed to a pair of Turian marines "Take her to the Infantry Assembler and get some AI to get that damn new armor I heard one of them brag to me about for her I want to see her Warp a Brutes head off."
The two walked over and helped her walk off her leg leaking fluid on the floor. The Sergeant then turned to the rest of the 1st Libertà.
"And what were you doing? Taking bets? One of your fellow marines was attacked with out provocation! You should have been beating the Thunder Head's head in with your guns!" He glared daggers at the marines none of them meeting his eyes.
"You sicken me." He shouldered his way past the Libertà marines and left.
-Codex Alliance armor types-
The type of armor a Marine wears is dependent on their role in battle lighter armor used for stealth operations and heavy armor used in general purpose use.
Only one type of armor is issued to each regiment
Vengeance: The standard armor Marines wear is also the biggest.
Rage armor: Far lighter than the Vengeance the Rage armor allows troops on marshy and wet ground the Vengeance weight makes prohibitive note the Rage is unlike the Vengeance unsealed to the environment. The Rage is more akin to 21st armor then the Vengeance is.
Sapper armor: Sapper armor has built in nanobot tanks and portal system allowing the teleportation of raw minerals for on the site production of structures. Their armors left arm ends in a constructor found on first contact era Novus Constructors.
Spec Op armor: the lightest armor Spec Op was built for stealth and infiltration often with built in stealth emiters for full invisibility. Many of its systems are classified.
